Sony Is Funding Shenmue 3, But That Doesn’t Mean It’ll Be PS4 Exclusive

The appearance of Shenmue 3 at Sony’s E3 conference inevitably got people questioning its involvement with the game. We know that Shenmue 3 is coming to PS4, but does that mean Sony is putting some money behind it, or is Shenmue 3 going to rely solely on Kickstarter cash?

Sony has confirmed that it will be supporting the game financially, describing the game as a “partnership”. That doesn’t mean, however, that Shenmue will be in the same position as the Sony funded Street Fighter 5 as a PS4 exclusive.

In the Kickstarter FAQ for the game, Xbox One and Wii U versions of Shenmue 3 are not ruled out.

“Currently we are planning development only for PC (Windows) and PS4,” the FAQ reads. “Other platforms have not been decided yet”.

That leaves open the possibility that Shenmue 3 could come to Xbox One and Wii U in the future, though it seems Shenmue 3 will at least come to PS4 first.

The news that Sony is funding Shenmue 3 highlights some uncomfortable disparities. It seems we are basically chucking in money to subsidise a gigantic publisher who will get a return on its investment, unlike us. Still, people aren’t likely to care that much if they get Shenmue 3.